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2 years and still waffling on Sawmill purchase

Started by dirtymartini, April 22, 2017, 05:10:24 PM

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dirtymartini

I found this forum over two years ago after we bought an all wooded 20 acre parcel of land. I came close to pulling the trigger on a mill but haven't done it yet...shortly after we bought the property my wife was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and had to stop working. This slowed down our our plans...Our plan was to build a new home on this property and sell our existing home.

I won't bore you with the details but after two years we finally have another plan, we are going to contract out the house but I would still like to buy a mill and mill enough lumber to build a barn/garage/workshop. I have cleared a spot for the house and sold most of the wood for firewood, saving a few nice cherry logs with hopes of sawing them in to lumber. The property has a lot of very mature EWP, Larch and Hemlock.

Right now I am looking at the Norwood LM29, Woodland mills HM126, HM130 and the EZ Boardwalk Jr.  I'm not looking to make any money sawing, I just want this for building a garage/barn/workshop and milling my own lumber for projects. I do like the Norwood for it's ability to add on accessories in the future.

Any suggestions?

ladylake


  Your getting older every day, time to get one.  Hydrauluics are nice.  The drive chain on my chain turner broke one day and I was just going to finish off turning by hand. I didn't even saw the first log before repairing it.  Steve


Timberking B20  18000  hours +  Case75xt grapple + forks+8" snow bucket + dirt bucket   770 Oliver   Lots(too many) of chainsaws, Like the Echo saws and the Stihl and Husky     W5  Case loader   1  trailers  Wright sharpener     Suffolk  setter Volvo MCT125c skid loader

dirtymartini

Quote from: ladylake on April 22, 2017, 05:20:16 PM

  Your getting older every day, time to get one.  Hydrauluics are nice.  The drive chain on my chain turner broke one day and I was just going to finish off turning by hand. I didn't even saw the first log before repairing it.  Steve

I agree, Hydraulics are nice but not in my budget right now.

dgdrls

Hi DM,

Suggest you test drive as many as you can before you purchase,
Used market can be your friend.

D

dirtymartini

Quote from: dgdrls on April 22, 2017, 06:23:58 PM
Hi DM,

Suggest you test drive as many as you can before you purchase,
Used market can be your friend.

D

Thanks, I have been searching Craigslist...from my location up through CNY and down into southern PA.

Ga Mtn Man

"If the women don't find you handsome they should at least find you handy." - Red Green


2012 LT40HDG29 with "Superized" hydraulics,  2 LogRite cant hooks, home-built log arch.

paul case

life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

nativewolf

Quote from: paul case on April 22, 2017, 07:06:55 PM
Have you looked up sawmill exchange.com?

PC

Ditto- This is a great site, there are a few others but they have hundreds of equipment pieces allready in one place. 
Liking Walnut

WV Sawmiller

   I hope you sealed the ends of those cherry logs really well as I find it bad to check. Good luck on your plans. Keep us informed what you land on.
Howard Green
WM LT35HDG25(2015) , 2011 4WD F150 Ford Lariat PU, Kawasaki 650 ATV, Stihl 440 Chainsaw, homemade logging arch (w/custom built rear log dolly), JD 750 w/4' wide Bushhog brand FEL

Dad always said "You can shear a sheep a bunch of times but you can only skin him once

dirtymartini


Darrel

Used gets my vote and so do hydraulics. Hydraulics were not in my budget either until I started looking at used mills. 
1992 LT40HD

If I don't pick myself up by my own bootstraps, nobody else will.

sawmilljoe

Woodlands 126 or 130 all the way. They are very well built and their customer service is great.

Magicman

It's hard to believe that I was 59 when I bought my used LT40SH through Sawmill Exchange in 2002.  It's purpose was to provide needed supplemental income and it has done just that.  I envisioned that I would saw and sell lumber plus custom saw, but after the first year I realized that my niche would be only portable custom sawing.  I passed One Million bf in 2012 and am now well on my way toward another.

I can not offer any recommendation as to what you should do, but in my instance, buying a sawmill was the correct decision.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

red

Life Happens take care of the important  things.
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

Brucer

These days I've been passing on my sawing knowledge to a young guy (by my standards ;D) who is keen to buy his own mill. He'd already done his homework on sawmills before I met him and he decided on Norwood manual. His number one consideration was that the mill is designed to be upgraded, right up to full hydraulics.

He's been getting a little spoiled running my hydraulic LT40, but he's still convinced that he's made the right business choice. I was impressed by how much thought and planning he put into his decision.
Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
"Complex problems have simple, easy to understand wrong answers."

thecfarm

I say I looked for 20 years before I bought one. My Father and me would look at them and talk. He never saw me buy one. He would've enjoyed seeing the lumber being sawn. A little far for you,but Thomas Bandsaw Mill built here in Maine.
Sorry to hear about the wife. My wife has some issues too. We have only one overhead cabinet and one cabinet on the floor. All the rest are draws. Pull it out,look in to see what she needs. No more coming home to a bunch of stuff on the floor,because she can't get it back in. Three foot doors in all the room. Those have been tested by a wheel chair,many times. Easier to move furniture in too.  ;) And a walk in shower and a high commode makes things easier for her. The house has everything she needs on one floor. Yes the big freezer is in the basement,so is the root cellar,but I can get what she wants,if needed. A ramp is in the garage. Still have one step to get into the house.
Good luck to your wife and both of you with the build. And the sawmill. ;D
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

YellowHammer

All things being equal, get the one with the strongest, welded, steel frame.
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

Cutting Edge

Quote from: Ga Mtn Man on April 22, 2017, 06:51:30 PM
EZ Boardwalk Jr gets my vote.

X 2

Quote from: YellowHammer on April 23, 2017, 08:44:28 AM
All things being equal, get the one with the strongest, welded, steel frame.


EZ Boardwalk builds a darn fine machine.  Simple to operate and maintain and they have probably the most robust frame and head that I have seen.  Frame is heavy enough to add hydraulics to down the road.  Paul Case can shed more light on the hydraulics.

The EZ backstop/clamp combination is by far the best I have used and I have installed several sets on other brands of sawmills for customers frustrated with their factory clamp(s)

Most parts are non-proprietary and pretty much off the shelf.  And for the price ??  IMO, no other mill comes close when you compare build quality and features.

Best of luck as you move forward, regardless of what mill you decide to purchase.   ;)


"Winning an argument isn't everything, as long as you are heard and understood" - W.S.


Cutting Edge Saw Service, LLC -
- Sharpening Services
- Portable/Custom Milling and Slabbing
- On-Site Sawmill Maintenance/Repair Services

Factory Direct Kasco WoodMaxx Blades
Ph- (304) 878-3343

dirtymartini

I'll say this about Woodland Mills, they by far have the most informative videos. I just watched a video on the HM130...it was an hour and seven minutes!

plantman

I've spoken to a gent who owns a Woodland mills and he likes it very much but I've also heard very good things about the EZ Boardwalk. I would personally go with the EZ because it looks like it would last a lifetime and I wouldn't have to worry about bending the frame when I drop a 3000 lb log on it.

dirtymartini

Quote from: plantman on April 23, 2017, 09:26:13 PM
I've spoken to a gent who owns a Woodland mills and he likes it very much but I've also heard very good things about the EZ Boardwalk. I would personally go with the EZ because it looks like it would last a lifetime and I wouldn't have to worry about bending the frame when I drop a 3000 lb log on it.

I was just on EZ Boardwalk's website a minute ago. They do look well built. I might have to check into what the shipping charges would be...

Darrel

If I were to buy a new manual mill, it would be the EZ Boardwalk. Most likely the 40.
1992 LT40HD

If I don't pick myself up by my own bootstraps, nobody else will.

schakey

Good morning dirty martini and everyone else  smiley_wavy. Been wanting a mill several years now, but life has a way of slowing dreams down, but you must keep the dream alive! Went and look at a used LT15 yesterday this might be the one or maybe not, going to call Woodmizer today to get some info.
This time next year we hope to be living on our land in West Virginia and will but a mill to good used.
Have a great day everybody  8)
Think-Dream-Plan-Do

dirtymartini

OK, I have narrowed it down to a choice between the EZ Boardwalk Jr and the Woodland Mills HM 130. Very close in price, log diameter capacity. 

plantman

Quote from: dirtymartini on April 23, 2017, 09:33:42 PM
Quote from: plantman on April 23, 2017, 09:26:13 PM
I've spoken to a gent who owns a Woodland mills and he likes it very much but I've also heard very good things about the EZ Boardwalk. I would personally go with the EZ because it looks like it would last a lifetime and I wouldn't have to worry about bending the frame when I drop a 3000 lb log on it.

I was just on EZ Boardwalk's website a minute ago. They do look well built. I might have to check into what the shipping charges would be...

EZ boardwalk also has a interesting design in which the sawmill carriage is built at an angle so that the blade enters the wood on one side first and this actually helps to pull the sawmill through the log. I'm not sure what the actual benefit is but it looks interesting and as though it is a good idea.



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